Task Force cleanup

Task Force cleanup

MrUnimport 31 Dec 2009 04:46

Anyone else think that the list of Mobile Task Forces is getting a bit out of hand? I recommend a bit of a trimming. At least, an edit to bring the tone of some entries in line.

Some MTFs of note:

• Mobile Task Force Mu-4 (aka "Debuggers"): Assigned to retrieve, contain, and destroy computer and electronic-based SCPs.
• Mobile Task Force Nu-1 (aka "Cause and Effective"): Very good at what they do, they are highly-trained experts on probability, chance, and event manipulation. Specialize in using temporal anomalies, resolving time-travel paradoxes, and the laws of causality.
• Reconnaissance Task Force Omicron-6 (aka "Trilobite"): The SCPS Trilobite and its crew, lost at sea during exploration of SCP-850.
• Mobile Task Force Pi-6 (aka "Suicide Research Squad"): Composed of researchers and agents that, through training or the strain of Foundation work, have become incapable of feeling fear. Deployed to handle SCPs with psyche-warping effects. Recognizable by their appreciation of flashy vehicles and weapons and complete disregard for safety.
• Mobile Task Force Rho-2 (aka "Hawthorne's Heroes"): A team dedicated to the care and continued containment of SCP-083-D. Entirety of team killed during termination of SCP-083.
• Mobile Task Force Psi-8 (aka "The Silencers"): Find all forms of communication between graves and the surface, normally put into place as a precaution against accidental burial, such as pipes, bells, and even phones, and sever them.
• Special Task Force O-23 (aka "The Kitchen Sink"): Created by several members of O5, O-23 is composed of several dozen of those researchers and agents who always seem to be in the line of fire, and survive. When all else fails, send in O-23.
• Mobile Task Force Lambda-2 (aka "Dr Clef's Bisexual All-Female Stripper Assassin Squad"): Although appearing on the Org Chart, Mobile Task Force Lambda-2 appears to have no members at all, and may, in fact, not exist. Its appearance here is a mystery.
• Mobile Task Force Lambda-3 (aka "No Given Nickname"): Responsible for tracking down and securing all instances of SCP-895 not already in the Foundation's possession.

Gamma-5 "They're on our side, Sir!" still rubs me the wrong way, sorry yoric, but that one is of less concern than some of the above.

Also requesting permission to add Mobile Task Force Epsilon-12 "Roadside Picnickers": agents specializing in navigation of areas with locally altered laws of physics.

Last edited on 22 Feb 2010 00:05 by MrUnimport Show more

Re: Task Force cleanup

AdminBright 31 Dec 2009 04:56

The only ones i care about keeping are Lamda-2 and O-23

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Admin, SCP Wiki

Re: Task Force cleanup

snorlison 31 Dec 2009 10:28

I think Nu-1 has potential, but the copy needs to be rewritten. Less emphasis on time travel, more emphasis on exploiting strange attractors of chaotic systems in terms of esoteric probability theory perhaps? I guess I just like peculiarly self-organizing systems.

I am indifferent on O-23. I think I should mention that if we give O-23 a pass, I feel like we're going against an established tradition if we let the lines between wiki and rp blur, a line we have maintained in other places. However, that's not necessarily a bad thing. It's something we should keep in mind, regardless.

I almost wish we could keep Lambda-2 in some form, exploiting, supporting, and subverting Clef's fandom status.

I also like Psi-8, but perhaps it does need a reworking. Unimport has an interesting idea, but right now, I don't think I'm thrilled with the way he has it worded exactly.

I'll ponder Nu-1 and Psi-8 and offer suggestions to how I think the text itself can be written in an interesting way.

Last edited on 31 Dec 2009 10:29 by snorlison Show more

Re: Task Force cleanup

MrUnimport 31 Dec 2009 17:32

I'm not particularly enthusiastic about the phrasing either. If you can think of a better way to put it I'd be grateful.

I don't want to delete all of these: Cause and Effective, for example, has a delightful name and purpose and mostly I just want its description edited. In the meantime, would everyone be okay if I deleted all references to decommissioned SCPs from that page?

Re: Task Force cleanup

Sophia Light 31 Dec 2009 04:55

I vote we kill these ones: (some pulled off of the list, comments noted in bold)

* Mobile Task Force Mu-4 (aka "Debuggers"): Assigned to retrieve, contain, and destroy computer and electronic-based SCPs. Boring
* Mobile Task Force Nu-1 (aka "Cause and Effective"): Very good at what they do, they are highly-trained experts on probability, chance, and event manipulation. Specialize in using temporal anomalies, resolving time-travel paradoxes, and the laws of causality. Boring
* Reconnaissance Task Force Omicron-6 (aka "Trilobite"): The SCPS Trilobite and its crew, lost at sea during exploration of SCP-850. Boring
* Mobile Task Force Pi-6 (aka "Suicide Research Squad"): Composed of researchers and agents that, through training or the strain of Foundation work, have become incapable of feeling fear. Deployed to handle SCPs with psyche-warping effects. Recognizable by their appreciation of flashy vehicles and weapons and complete disregard for safety.
* Mobile Task Force Rho-2 (aka "Hawthorne's Heroes"): A team dedicated to the care and continued containment of SCP-083-D. Entirety of team killed during termination of SCP-083. SCP is long decommisioned
* Special Task Force O-23 (aka "The Kitchen Sink"): Created by several members of O5, O-23 is composed of several dozen of those researchers and agents who always seem to be in the line of fire, and survive. When all else fails, send in O-23. Let's keep the rp and the wiki seperate, please

Task Force Epsilon-4 (aka "The Arsonists"): Currently retrieving SCP-███ on order of Dr. Loomer. Previously participated in the retrieval of SCP-███. Total casualties thus far incurred: 12. Could you have less information on a task force?
Mobile Task Force Chi-7 (aka "The Dark Angels"): Specialize in dealing with SCP objects who thrives in the absence of light. Name and concept are stupid

And keep these ones in particular:
* Mobile Task Force Lambda-2 (aka "Dr Clef's Bisexual All-Female Stripper Assassin Squad"): Although appearing on the Org Chart, Mobile Task Force Lambda-2 appears to have no members at all, and may, in fact, not exist. Its appearance here is a mystery. I think it's funny
* Mobile Task Force Psi-8 (aka "The Silencers"): Find all forms of communication between graves and the surface, normally put into place as a precaution against accidental burial, such as pipes, bells, and even phones, and sever them. Found this one interesting, even though it's never mentioned in SCPs- makes the page more worth reading

Re: Task Force cleanup

MrUnimport 31 Dec 2009 05:05

Suggestion for the Silencers: change description to "Charged with severing lines of communication between the recently buried and the surface such as bells, pipes, or telephones, placed as a precaution against accidental burial, to maintain unidirectional flow of information into the grave."

Or something along those lines. It might make them a little less mysterious, but I'd like them to have a more clearly-defined purpose.

Last edited on 31 Dec 2009 05:06 by MrUnimport Show more

Re: Task Force cleanup

tunedtoadeadchannel 31 Dec 2009 10:06

I don't mind a little RP spillover occasionally. To my way of thinking, the wiki has no real canon, so there's no particular reason not to, as long as we keep it low key and fairly rare.

I'd support editing the one whose SCP was deleted, though leave the team, I like the name.

I want G-5 left untouched. It's my favorite, and I think it fills a function the Foundation would need a team for.

Pi-6 is retarded.

Last edited on 31 Dec 2009 10:08 by tunedtoadeadchannel Show more

Re: Task Force cleanup

DrClef 31 Dec 2009 17:58

Let's clarify: a Mobile Task Force is, according to the rather nebulous canon, a small group of agents tasked with a specific mission. This mission is generally fairly narrow: like medical specialists, they focus on a single field of expertise, since each "narrow" field has so many variables and unusual corner-cases that to be prepared for every eventuality is tough to begin with. A few are assigned to specific SCPs (Omega-7). Others, like the Mole Rats, focus on a recurring theme in SCPs (sites).

I think we can fix a lot of these if we keep the description to training requirements and mission only: Example: Nu-1, Cause and Effective, should be narrowed down to, "Consists of experts in probability, temporal mechanics, and causality. Assigned to temporal anomalies, time-travel paradoxes, and maintaining timeline cohesion."

One specific note: Gamma-5 shouldn't be a mobile task force, it's mission is too big. I'd assume the Foundation has an entire division consisting of hundreds to thousands of people, including undercover agents, devoted to information control: that's not particularly mobile at all.

Re: Task Force cleanup

agatharights 31 Dec 2009 18:47

I…didn't even realize we had these task forces.

So.

…

Re: Task Force cleanup

Dr Gears 02 Jan 2010 15:32

I agree with the clean up of the forces…a lot of them suck rather badly. I would suggest that most of the ones by Name could probably stand to go. I'll post a list of what i feel can go and stay later, right now i'm too sick and would probably end up typing gibbrish, but i support the basic idea.

Re: Task Force cleanup

Pair Of Ducks 13 Feb 2010 06:59

I for one am not a fan of keeping a concise listing of these. I'd rather they just show up in the articles themselves, and when we see stupid sounding Task Force names we can handle it in regards to the article.

That said, some of the stupider ones should probably be erased. Dark Angels? Really?

Re: Task Force cleanup

Quikngruvn 14 Feb 2010 18:40

The list is useful in that it shows which designations are in use (so someone doesn't try to use, say, Lambda-2 for something totally boring), and could serve as a source of inspiration. But yeah, agreeing that the list needs cleanup. The list of sites could use some cleanup as well, FWIW.

Re: Task Force cleanup

DrEverettMann 14 Feb 2010 18:53

I like the idea insofar as having the same names pop up adds an element of verisimilitude, and a list helps that. It helps add another layer of context to the SCPs, and a sense that they all exist in the same world, rather than being completely isolated fictional elements.

Re: Task Force cleanup

Pair Of Ducks 14 Feb 2010 19:25

back in -my- day, we had to read all the articles and just learn to recognize the reoccurring task forces. And then if we used them, and used them wrong, we'd slapped around like a wife that forgot the gravy.

But I guess times have changed, too many articles, we can't expect people to actually research anymore…

Re: Task Force cleanup

MrUnimport 19 Feb 2010 01:31

As a a result of a conference between pooryoric, Imants, Paradox, Mann, and myself, MTF-Φ1 "Hand Cannons" was removed from the listing and MTF-Χ1 "Dark Angels" was renamed "Spotlight Specialists" on yoric's suggestion by Imants.

Re: Task Force cleanup

tunedtoadeadchannel 19 Feb 2010 07:30

I believe we also removed "the suicide research squad", because damn.

Re: Task Force cleanup

Quikngruvn 19 Feb 2010 15:30

Both Epsilon-3 and Epsilon-4 linked to SCPs that were deleted in the Mass Edit, so I had blacked out their SCPs a while ago. I really don't see a reason to keep either of them around.

A couple sites look to be in the same boat: Containment Site-34 has no description at all; Site-43 used to have the lucky penny but is now just a nebulous benefactor; and Containment Unit-11 just has a [DATA EXPUNGED]. There's also Sector-07, which I think would be fine without the "Host to SCP-███" statement.

Would anyone object to me changing Sector-07 and lopping the rest of the ones I mentioned?

[Edit, 2/20:] Hearing no objections, I did it.

Last edited on 20 Feb 2010 15:41 by Quikngruvn Show more